What the hell!
Clark was startled.
A hint of surprise flashed in the eyes of the little monster on the ceiling.
But soon, it chuckled, shook its body, and disappeared behind the chandelier.
Seeing this, Clark scratched his head.
Ron thought for a moment and said uncertainly, "That looks like Peeves, a ghost at Hogwarts who specializes in mischief... Er, it doesn't seem right to call him a ghost, because he has a solid form that other ghosts don't have, more like a poltergeist. Anyway, students targeted by Peeves either get wastepaper baskets dumped on their heads or get ink splattered all over their faces. Clark, you must be careful in the future."
"Me be careful? He's the one who should be careful." Clark chuckled coldly, weighing the ink bottle in his hand. He was surprised to find it much lighter than he imagined. Even if it hit someone on the head, it wouldn't cause any major issues, at most a bump.
Of course, getting ink splattered all over one's face was unavoidable either way.
The small disturbance quickly subsided.
Not long after, Professor McGonagall returned and efficiently directed the new students to line up: "The Sorting Ceremony is ready, follow me."
After speaking, the serious witch led the way out of the small room.
The new students quickly followed.
Entering the Great Hall.
It was magnificent and brightly lit by candles.
There were four long tables in the hall.
On the long tables, silver plates and crystal-clear goblets were neatly arranged; many people were sitting beside the tables, and the upper-year students were looking at their juniors with curious eyes.
Thousands of candles floated in mid-air, like shining stars.
Clark, who grew up in the countryside, had never seen such an incredible scene and couldn't help opening his mouth in silent amazement.
Professor McGonagall led the line of new students to the front of the high table.
Once the line was in place, she waved her wand, summoning a stool, and placed the Sorting Hat, which had been prepared long ago, on the stool.
The Sorting Hat was dirty, tattered, and wrinkled, with a human face on it.
Honestly, at first glance, it was quite terrifying.
But when this hat started singing, that touch of horror vanished.
"You might not think I'm pretty..."
Severely out of tune?
No.
This broken hat was never in tune from the start!
Fortunately, Clark had practiced blocking his hearing before; otherwise, he would have been so annoyed that he might have shot out a few heat rays.
After a while, Clark noticed people around him were clapping.
He decisively released his hearing and clapped his hands pretentiously, imitating the people around him.
Hearing the applause, the Sorting Hat was very satisfied and revealed a big smile.
When the applause gradually subsided, Professor McGonagall pulled out a long list from somewhere and announced the official start of the Sorting Ceremony.
And the first name this serious witch read out turned out to be the girl with braided hair who had come to Hogwarts in the same boat as Clark.
"Hannah Abbott."
When this name was read, Clark heard Ron beside him let out a long breath, relaxing considerably.
"What's wrong?" Clark asked in a low voice.
Ron twitched the corner of his mouth, revealing an unhappy expression: "Damn Fred and George, they told me the content of the Sorting Ceremony was wrestling a troll, and you have to last three minutes to become a member of Hogwarts!"
Harry couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
Clark scratched his eyebrow and whispered, "Just think about it, you'd know it's impossible. But I should be able to last three minutes, no, maybe even ten minutes..."
Ron: ???
Harry: ???
Knowing he had misspoken, Clark quickly coughed lightly: "I mean, the content of the Sorting Ceremony is clearly recorded in 'A History of Magic', specifically the part where the four founders established Hogwarts. Why, haven't you read it?"
Reading?
Read my ass!
Ron wanted to say that.
But the words changed on his lips to: "I read it, but I accidentally forgot."
"So that's how it is—" Clark didn't say anything more.
The Sorting Ceremony proceeded methodically.
When Professor McGonagall called Harry's name, a burst of discussion suddenly erupted in the Great Hall.
"Good luck." As Harry passed by, Clark patted him on the shoulder.
This pat seemed to give Harry some courage.
Clark watched Harry sit on the stool.
It took a full two or three minutes before the Sorting Hat announced Harry's result.
"Gryffindor!"
As soon as the words fell, thunderous cheers erupted from the long table above which hung the red banner with a golden lion.
Clark and Ron were also clapping.
While clapping, Ron said very seriously to Clark, "Clark, my whole family is in Gryffindor, I should be in Gryffindor too. The key lies with you, you must come to Gryffindor."
"Ah... I can't guarantee that, because Ravenclaw seems quite suitable for me too." Clark's eyes flickered: "How about this, if I really have a choice between two, I will definitely go to Gryffindor to find you."
Hearing this, Ron looked at Clark and nodded heavily.
The following events were just as expected—
When Professor McGonagall called Ron's name, the moment the Sorting Hat touched Ron's red hair, it announced the final sorting result.
Just as every Weasley belongs to Gryffindor.
There were no surprises with Ron either.
Ron took off the Sorting Hat, looked back at Clark, and then walked towards the Gryffindor table.
Clark saw Fred, George, and the quiet Percy all stand up, opening their arms to warmly welcome their youngest brother.
Clark was a bit envious.
Because he had always wanted a brother or sister.
Just then, Clark heard his own name.
"Clark Cavill!"
Clark took a deep breath and walked towards the Sorting Hat.
On the way, he heard a lot of discussions.
But Clark didn't care much.
Because all his attention was focused on that broken hat.
At the same time, Clark couldn't help but wonder how this list of new students was arranged. Was it by the first letter of the first name or the last name? If it was the first letter of the last name, then his 'K' (Editor's note: In the original text, the author seems to imply 'C' for Cavill or 'K' for Clark depending on transliteration, but alphabetically C comes before P and W, so the logic in the raw text is slightly flawed regarding alphabetical order if assuming standard English alphabetization. However, based on the raw text's logic: "If it was the first letter of the last name, then his 'K' shouldn't come after Ron's 'W', but before Harry's 'P'." The raw text uses 'K' likely for Clark's name transliteration or a typo for C. Regardless, he is confused about the order.) shouldn't be after Ron's 'W', but before Harry's 'P'.
What Clark didn't know was that he wasn't actually on the so-called list of new students.
Because the Book of Admittance and the Quill of Acceptance had no idea that a person named 'Clark Cavill' existed. Professor McGonagall simply saw that Clark and Ron were standing close together, so after reading Ron's name, she called Clark out as well.
Regardless of how anxious Clark felt inside, he finally sat on the stool and put on the Sorting Hat.
Instantly, a voice sounded in Clark's mind:
"A healthy lad, let me see which house suits you best."
Clark held his breath and focused, constantly chanting 'Gryffindor' in his heart.
"Gryffindor? It would be a good place for you... It's just..." The Sorting Hat's voice was rarely hesitant, as if confirming something.
Clark was so nervous he didn't dare to breathe loudly.
But strangely, the Sorting Hat fell silent.
Time passed bit by bit.
The Sorting Hat didn't speak again.
Clark was extremely confused.
Wait, is it that difficult?
The longest time the Sorting Hat had thought before was only three or four minutes.
Why is it going over ten minutes with him?
And this.
Was not the limit of the Sorting Hat's silence.
Heaven knows how long this hat would think.
Little did Clark know, while he was anxious, the Sorting Hat was even more anxious than him.
Because it didn't detect a trace of magic in Clark at all!
From the initial confidence and composure to the current bewilderment.
It's hard to imagine that a hat could express so many complex emotions.
Discussions were buzzing on and off the stage.
Professors, students, everyone was staring intently at Clark.
Even though Clark never had stage fright, his expression became somewhat stiff under such intense scrutiny.
The Sorting Hat grew angrier the more it thought about it, feeling greatly fooled.
With a little force, it completed a magnificent turn on Clark's head and roared at Dumbledore on the high table: "Headmaster Dumbledore, are you dissatisfied with me? Why test me with a Muggle!"
Muggle?
One stone stirred up a thousand waves!
The Great Hall exploded instantly.
Clark's face turned pale, and he was about to defend himself that he wasn't a Muggle.
Unexpectedly, Dumbledore stood up first and said word by word in a voice that could be clearly heard by everyone: "Clark Cavill's situation is special, but I can guarantee with my honor that he is absolutely not a Muggle."
Professor McGonagall also took a step forward and said to all the students at the four long tables: "And me, Mr. Cavill's aptitude has also been tested by me; he is indeed a wizard."
You say he is a wizard.
So he really is?
Can someone without magic fluctuations be considered a wizard?
The Sorting Hat became increasingly angry.
But along with anger, a trace of guilt inevitably arose.
Could it really be mistaken?
Hmm...
Not sure, let's look again.
This look took another ten minutes or so.
The Sorting Hat showed a firm look again and shouted loudly: "Muggle! Muggle! Muggle! He is a Muggle! Absolutely no mistake!"
As soon as these words came out, the whole place was in an uproar.
Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall said 'Clark Cavill' is a wizard.
The magical object left by the founders of the school said 'Clark Cavill' is a Muggle.
So—
Who is right and who is wrong?
Dumbledore pinched the bridge of his nose helplessly.
With a thought, his lips moved, and he whispered something to the Sorting Hat.
Hearing this, the Sorting Hat looked skeptical.
After hesitating again and again, it finally relented and announced listlessly: "Clark Cavill, Gryffindor!"
No one clapped.
The students were still recovering from what had just happened.
Helpless, Dumbledore had to start clapping first.
Then Professor McGonagall and other professors.
Below the stage, Harry and Ron reacted and quickly started clapping too.
Just like that, scattered applause gradually sounded, finally giving Clark a way out.
Even so, Clark's mood couldn't be described as very good.
After all, he had looked forward to this Sorting Ceremony for a long time, but didn't expect such a result.
Walking somewhat despondently to the Gryffindor table, except for Harry, Ron, and Hermione, everyone else's attitude towards Clark was extremely subtle.
"Don't take it to heart, Clark. In time, they will know how amazing you are." Harry patted Clark on the shoulder, imitating Clark's earlier gesture.
Clark forced a smile, recovering some spirit.
Ron also comforted softly: "What Muggle? Can a Muggle have a photographic memory! I think that Sorting Hat has been used for too long and its brain has gone bad."
"How can a hat have a brain? But thank you for your comfort, I feel much better." Clark patted his face, forcing himself to cheer up.
Yeah.
He can fly and has immense strength; how could he be a Muggle?
Since there is no problem with me, the problem must be with others!
Perhaps as Ron said, that Sorting Hat had some issues because it was too old.
Thinking of this, Clark's mood suddenly cleared up.
Although he knew that the Gryffindor students had a slight misunderstanding of him because of the Sorting Hat's blunder, he believed that these misunderstandings would be resolved one by one in daily interactions.
I, Clark Cavill, am one hundred percent a wizard, not a Muggle!
Although there was some chaos, the Sorting Ceremony had to continue.
When the Sorting Hat announced that the last student belonged to Hufflepuff, Professor McGonagall took the hat and the stool away without a word.
Dumbledore smiled slightly and opened his arms to all the students: "A new year, new faces. Before the banquet begins, I want to say a few simple words: 'Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!' Thank you, I'm done. Now, let's eat!"
As his words fell, a lot of food appeared on the four long tables.
Clark's eyes lit up.
This is life at Hogwarts, a simple table of food, just devour it!
Anyway, because of the Sorting Hat issue, no one was willing to come over and talk to him for the time being. Clark shrugged and forked a piece of steak onto his plate.
Eat.
I eat crazily!
Although the Cavill family never treated Clark poorly regarding food, it was hard to prepare so many dishes.
Clark really didn't treat himself as an outsider; he ate whatever was there and whatever was delicious.
Such a bold eating style unconsciously aroused Ron and Harry's competitiveness.
The three of them started sweeping through the various delicacies in front of them as if in a competition.
However, it was regrettable.
Although Ron and Harry were growing, they still couldn't beat Clark's extraordinary iron stomach. In a short while, the two were defeated, leaving Clark alone chewing non-stop.
At the same time, on the stage—
Seeing that Clark didn't seem to be affected by the sorting turmoil, Dumbledore finally let go of his suspended heart.
The old man smiled slightly and pushed up his glasses gently.
Suddenly, a gloomy voice sounded in Dumbledore's ear: "What's going on with that student?"
Dumbledore felt a bit surprised.
But after thinking carefully, he seemed to understand something and said gently to Severus Snape: "What's going on? What do you want to ask?"
Snape stared into Dumbledore's eyes, pondered for a moment, and actually stopped asking.
Dumbledore sighed faintly in his heart.
Black hair, green eyes...
In this way, it made sense that Snape would care about Clark.